Goodbye 2017, and hello 2018!
2017 was a good year for me both in my bookish life, and personal life. I read some amazing books this year, met some amazing authors, moved into a new home, and took some wonderful vacations. I feel very fortunate, and I hope 2018 is just as good to me as this past year.
Let’s see what I accomplished in 2017, and what my plans for 2018 are…
*In this post I share my 2017 highlights, reading stats, my favorite books, and my favorite blog posts of the year. I will also discuss my bookish goals for 2018.
My 2017 Bookish Highlights:
1.) I read 120 books. I am still in shock that I managed to read over 100 books in a year, let alone 120!
2.) I attended many book events and was able to meet some amazing authors. In 2017, I met V.E. Schwab, Mary Kubica, Leigh Bardugo, Lisa Jewell, R.L. Stine, Brit Bennett, Kayla Rae Whittaker, Celeste Ng, and many more.
3.) I did *better* with my book buying problem… at least I did in the second half of 2017. I mean, there were months like April where I purchased over 27 books in one month… BUT I only purchased 25 books total in the second half of 2017! So I MAY still have a small book buying problem, but it has gotten a tad better.
My 2017 Reading Stats:
Books I Read in 2017:
Favorite Reads of 2017:
*Book titles link to Goodreads
• Historical Fiction •
» Enchanted Island by Allison Amend
• Thriller •
» The Wolf Road by Beth Lewis
» The Good Girl by Mary Kubica
• Contemporary •
» The Animators by Kayla Rae Whitaker
» Lucky Boy by Shanthi Sekaran
• Fantasy •
» A Conjuring of Light by V.E. Schwab
Honorable Mentions:
» A Gathering of Shadows by V.E. Schwab
» Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman
» The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
» The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
• Non-Fiction •
» Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness by Susannah Cahalan
» Sachiko: A Nagasaki Bomb Survivor’s Story by Caren Stelson
• Young Adult •
» East by Edith Pattou
» Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
Honorable Mentions:
» The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
» Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
» A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee
» A Million Junes by Emily Henry
• Middle Grade •
» The Crystal Ribbon by Celeste Lim
Honorable Mentions:
» Counting by 7’s by Holly Goldberg Sloan
» Wishtree by Katherine Applegate
» Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo
» Amina’s Voice by Hena Khan
Favorite Blog Posts of 2017:
» Book Blogger Recs: Bloggers to Follow for Thriller/Suspense/Crime Readers
» Book Blogger Recs: Bloggers to Follow for YA Readers (Part 1)
» Book Blogging Babble: What Makes You Click (or NOT Click) That Follow Button?
» Bookish Babble: Bookworm Stereotypes
Bookish Goals for 2018:
» Read 100 books.
Even though I crushed my 2017 reading goal of 90 books by reading 120 this year, I decided to only up my goal to 100 for 2018. Since blogging had to take a back seat for the second half of 2017 due to some big changes in my personal life, I definitely want to be able to devote more time to blogging in 2018.
» 80% feedback ratio on NetGalley = 35 NetGalley books in 2018
Yeah, so this was one of my goals for 2017… it didn’t happen. Not even close. I’m at 35% right now. The saddest part is that I didn’t even request any books in 2017. Does it make it any less embarrassing if I mention that I started 2017 with a 15% feedback ratio? No? Didn’t think so… My biggest issue here is that I had requested lots of books way back in 2016 that I have zero desire to read now. I struggle to find the motivation to pick many of the titles left sitting on my shelf… BUT if I look at the math, I only need to read 35 books, about 3 per month, off my NetGalley shelf to achieve this goal, which is totally doable.
» Be more active in the bookish community
When my hiatus began back in August 2017, I really fell off the grid in regards to the bookish community. I feel so out of the loop now. I need to make more of a effort to not only get back into blog hopping and visiting other book blogs, but also be more active on bookstagram & twitter.
How was your 2017?
Did you meet your reading goal?
Which books were your favorites of the year?
What are your reading goals for 2018?
cover2covermom.wordpress.com 
I’m currently reading The Night Circus so I’m happy to see you gave it a mention!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It really is worth the hype. The writing is absolutely fantastic and the world is mesmerizing.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad you enjoyed it, I can’t wait to delve in deeper myself!
LikeLike
I totally meant to read Brain on Fire and didn’t. Hopefully this year!
LikeLike
It was a fascinating book! It really felt like a medical thriller instead of nonfiction. I listened to the audiobook because I typically read nonfiction via audiobook… makes it feel more real to me.
LikeLike
I should be getting a copy soon! I just got a notice from the swap site I use. Someone else mentioned it in their faves too and reminded me I wanted to read it
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great post and great year for you by the sound of it. Hope your 2018 is a good one too.
Netgalley – it’s taken me a while to get my ratio up a bit but I’m still not at 80% – i pretty much hover around 75% – every time I go up a bit I go and request a couple of more. I think we all go through this because of that initial flush of excitement when we first join.
Lynn 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
Let’s just say I am STILL paying for my excitement of first joining NetGalley lol
LikeLike
I did not do better with my book buying haha. But you had a very accomplished year and finished with a new home! So happy for you. Great line up that includes some of my own faves 😉💗
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Danielle! I definitely have a lot to be thankful for 🙂 I accomplished a lot this past year, and read so many great books. Can’t wait to see what 2018 has is store for us!
LikeLike
💗
LikeLike
Since I don’t have Netgalley, I get confused by discussions around it. If you don’t review enough books, do they revoke your borrowing privileges? I’m also confused why people who own lots of books get in there. I haven’t even considered it because I would never get to the books I bought! Have you thought about doing a challenge for which you read your own books? Maybe even for one month?
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sooooo no there isn’t exactly a punishment or revoking of your borrowing privileges…. BUT the higher your rating, the more likely you’ll be approved for the books you request. The appeal of NetGalley is that you can request books MONTHS before publication and read them for free in exchange for a review. My issues was when I joined back in 2016, I didn’t really get how it worked, so I requested an insane amount of books… which shockingly I was mostly all approved for. I know lots of bloggers are able to read & review 100 NetGalley books per year, but i’m not one of them lol I just want to uphold my end of the bargain and read & review the books I asked for… I feel it is only fair. Once I’m caught up, I probably will only use NetGalley when there is a book I am highly anticipating . And yes, I go through months where I only read my physical and eBook TBR… I have to take breaks from review books for my sanity
LikeLike
That makes more sense! I’ve never fully known. They must have a certain number of “copies” of books they approve, otherwise they would lose business.
LikeLike
I’ve heard a lot of people going on about their NG ratio lately and saying that they made the mistake of requesting way too much when they just started out on NetGalley. I can imagine it’s a struggle to try and get on top of that backlist though. We simply change throughout the years as well and then picking up older books that barely catch our eye anymore.. I hope you find the motivation to read them though!!
Also, I keep wondering how bookbloggers combine blogging and all the social media accounts, haha. I seem to be either on Twitter or on Instagram but cannot seem to combine them? One of them is bound to lose my attention and then I have to motivate myself all over again. It’s weird.
Good luck reaching your goals! 🙂
LikeLike
NetGalley aside, you blew 2017 out of the water! I’m really impressed that you achieved so much this year despite needing all the time away you took in the last half of the year. It can be hard to balance all those elements, for sure. Great job!
I am with you on NetGalley, though my ratio is 54%. I sometimes drink too much bubbly wine and go on a NetGalley requesting spree.
Many of my own books are leftovers from 2016, too! That’s when I first joined NetGalley and requested everything thinking I’d never get approval for a darn thing. Boy, was I wrong. One of my goals for this year is to also improve my NetGalley ratio. Have you met Evelina @ Avalinah’s Books yet? She is absolutely wonderful. She also hosts a monthly meme called State of the ARC focusing on whittling down those gigantic ARC piles sitting around. Something to consider if you are looking for a community to help you through this.
I cannot wait to follow your progress this year. Good luck with all your 2018 goals!
LikeLike
Lucky you for meeting so many awesome writers! And reading your favorites list makes me realize I have a LOT of books to read in 2018. The Shades Of Magic books are on my all time favorite list of course. ❤ Good luck with your goals this year and have a wonderful 2018!
LikeLike
I am so glad to hear you had a great year and got lucky enough to meet so many great writers! I hope that 2018 will be just as bright for you, both in your personal life and when it comes to reading and blogging. You have been reading SO much and so many amazing books, yay! I loved the ADSOM series so much, The Hate U Give was also a really powerful read for me. I haven’t read The Bear and The Nightingale, but everyone around me has been saying wonderful things about this book – I am happy you enjoyed it just as well! 🙂
LikeLike